01.07.2022 – 09:25
Police Bremen
Bremen (ots)
-
Ort: Bremen Zeit: 01.07.2022
The English term “skimming” means “skimming off” or “scooping up” and stands for a method of illegally spying on electronic data from debit cards at ATMs in order to rob account holders of their money. The police in Bremen recently recorded an increase in cases and are clarifying.
In order to get hold of the card data, the perpetrators install a manipulated card reader or even a complete front panel in front of the card slot of the ATM. These manipulated card readers are optically adapted to the model of the cash dispenser (same color, same sticker) and are manufactured in such a way that the inserted bank card is transported through the illegal reader to the original card reader. In this way, the account data is read out and saved without affecting the ATM and without the customer becoming suspicious. To get the PIN, typing in the PIN number is recorded with a camera or a camera phone. The data obtained through criminal means are used to make copies of payment cards, which the perpetrators can use to withdraw money from the victims’ accounts.
On Tuesday evening, a 53-year-old woman from Bremen went to an ATM in the Westend district. After the cash withdrawal had been carried out, the customer removed her EC card and noticed that the reader had become detached from the machine when it was removed, a case of skimming. The police were informed and investigated because of the preparation of the counterfeiting of money and stamps. Recently, investigators have counted a good dozen cases with this or a similar modus operandi in recent months.
We gues:
Please handle your payment cards with care and always keep the PIN separate from the card. Do you have multiple payment cards? Do not operate the door opener of a bank with the same card that you then want to use to withdraw money. Never enter your PIN at a door opener at a bank. No bank requires entering the PIN to access the ATM. The card reader only has the function of a door opener. In such cases, notify the police and the financial institution. Make sure that the entry of your PIN cannot be observed by others. Ensure a sufficient safety distance to the next customer. When entering the PIN, completely cover the keypad with your other hand or with an object (e.g. purse, piece of paper) as a privacy screen. This makes “spying out” by camera or camera phone considerably more difficult. Do not use an ATM where something seems unusual to you, e.g. B. Attached strips or covers, protruding and loose parts, traces of adhesive around the card slot. If you suspect tampering, you should not use the machine. Notify the police in order to be able to secure possible clues.
Further tips are available from the Bremen Police Prevention Center, Am Wall 195, telephone 362-19003.
Questions please contact:
Bremen police press office
Nils Matthiesen
Phone: 0421 361-12114
http://www.polizei.bremen.de
http://www.polizei-beratung.de
Original content from: Police Bremen, transmitted by news aktuell
–
